Women under the Cosh
Radio Television Suisse | 9min

00’01 VO: -The Taliban flag has been flying over Kabul since August 16th. Heavily armed, the new masters of Afghanistan are on patrol. They're showing off power. Fear has taken hold of the country. 40 kilometers west of the city, we were able to get access to a maternity hospital that agreed to open its doors to us. At its head, a courageous woman, a gynecologist. She goes every day to her patients, despite the risks.

00’49 Doctor: -Hello, how are you today? Did the operation go well? Is the child okay?

Woman: Yes.

Doctor: How long have you been here?

Woman: Two days ago.

01’05 VO: The doctor's making the rounds to check on the women and their children are doing well.

01’14 Doctor: When was this baby admitted? She's been here for two days. If you don't take care of your hygiene, the baby is at risk of contracting diseases.

Woman 2: The other doctor said that his blood was infected.

Doctor: Whatever, just make sure that she washes her hands before breastfeeding her baby.

01’47 VO: Behind the apparent calm, the doctor and her team are anxious. The doctor does not know if the female staff in the maternity ward will be able to keep on working. Of the 130 employees at the hospital, there are 40 women, which could attract the attention of the Taliban.

02’08 Doctor: We are afraid they would blow up the hospital, because in the past, when the Taliban were fighting the government forces, they destroyed government buildings, like hospitals. We could be killed in a fire, or they could launch rockets at us. Despite all the threats, we continue to serve our people, our patients, our sisters and pregnant women. If they do not keep the doctors, the women engineers and all the women qualified women with degrees, how do they plan to govern the country?

02’55 VO: These concerns are valid. Last year, a maternity hospital in Kabul was the target of a terrorist attack. 24 people died, including a nurse and women who had just given birth. Most of the caregivers did not wish to testify in front of camera. They fear for their lives and that of their families, like this midwife.

03’21 Midwife: A lot of changes will take place for women, about their work, the way they dress. They will be asked to stay at home! I'm afraid I'll lose my job if they don't allow us to work anymore. Like many others, we could flee the country and become refugees. I don't want that and all these problems.

03’57 VO: The caregivers are afraid of being followed and threatened outside the hospital. All women in Afghanistan are afraid that they will have to submit to the Taliban rules, in spite of their speeches that are meant to be reassuring. At their first press conference, the Taliban tried to show themselves in a new light.

04’20 Taliban spokesman: Women will participate and work in all categories of society. There shall be no violence nor discrimination against them.

04’34 VO: It's hard for Afghan women to believe them. No one has forgotten what they what they had to face when the Taliban ran the country from 1996 to 2001. Girls had to leave school at 8 years old. Women did not have the right to work. Nor go out on the street, they had to wear a burqa and be accompanied by a man. The women who were accused of disobedience were stoned to death. The activist Mahbooba Seraj agreed to meet us and talk to us openly. She's always been fighting for women's rights. She is skeptical about the Taliban's commitments.

05’14: Mahbooba Seraj: We are all very nervous. Nobody believes what they say, because they are only words. There are already women suffering things all over Afghanistan. It proves that they're doing the opposite of what they're saying. We have to talk to the Taliban! We have to explain to them what our vision is, because their actions depends on their own vision! It is important that they know how we, as women, perceive our role and our place. There are 18 million of us in this country, we cannot be ignored! Men will only see the situation from their own point of view, as men. The woman will see it from their point of view of the family and the community, city and country.

06’12 VO: Women are not the only ones to fear for their future. Everyone is wondering, especially the young people. Thousands of Afghans have fled since the day Kabul fell. Those who didn't have the contacts or the money to leave stayed. Mustapha, 18 years old, had just obtained a scholarship to study in the USA. He can't leave anymore. He managed to get out to shoot this footage.

 06’39 Mustapha: Since the Taliban have taken control of Kabul, all the banks have closed. The ATMs are no longer working. I was told that there were some who still had cash, so I'm looking into it.

06’55 VO: Closed, too! The Afghans no longer have access to their savings, to their salaries. Even if the shops are open, the streets are quiet and the women hide to protect themselves.

07’09 Mustapha: 20 years ago, when the Taliban controlled Afghanistan, they forced people to wear beards and traditional clothing. Nowadays, people do it of their own accord, because they are afraid, even when the Taliban have not issued any rules yet.

07’26 VO: Mustapha is stuck in Kabul with his family. His sister is a student at the best medical university. She didn't wear that kind of veil, but she's afraid to show her face. Mustapha is worried about her.

07’40 Mustapha: What do you think, or anticipate, is going to happen to the women like you who are studying to be doctors?

07’51 Mustapha’s sister:  My future, and the future of everyone here, is uncertain. I am very afraid for my future. I can't realize it. I have so many dreams! I've been going to school since I was three years old. I always wanted to be a doctor and live here to help my country. I don't want to stop now!

08’18 VO:  Mustapha's mother is a teacher. She hasn't left her house since August 15.

08’23 Mustapha: My mother has cooked rice. We are lucky that we still have food.

08’33 Mustapha’s mother: Our life under the control the Taliban will be terrible! We are afraid today and it will be worse tomorrow! I don't dare leave the house, the children don't go to school anymore, they are closed. What are we going to do if there's no more education? My children are anxious, depressed. They fear bombs, attacks.

09’04 VO: The family would like to leave. But how? Like many Afghans, they feel trapped in their own country.